Learning Futures

Learning Futures was a national initiative across England, to foster, evaluate and share secondary school innovation, around four priorities which they saw as central to the future shape of learning in schools:

Extended Learning Relationships: The 21st century heralds the possibility of a system redesign that can genuinely respond to the needs of learners and the demands for anytime/anywhere learning, collaborative and independent learning, and personalised learning.

Enquiry-Based Learning: Enquiry-based learning is a key component of the Learning Futures model. Its premise is that how students learn is as important as what they learn, because learning is a skill they can carry with them for their entire lives.

School as ‘Learning Commons’: During the first year of Learning Futures, students have begun using school as a ‘base camp’ for enquiries that take them into the community, thereby expanding their learning relationships. At the same time, the number of people with a shared interest in the life of the school is growing and relationships within school are becoming less hierarchical.

School as ‘Base Camp’: A genuine 21st century school should be a base camp rather than a single destination – a place where students meet to explore learning opportunities that take them into their communities, onto the web, and to local businesses and employers. It should also be a hub that creates connections with families, and with learning partners beyond school.

The Learning Futures Research network builds on the advances made in Learning Futures, expanding the research programme to a global scale as we connect with other regional, national and international initiatives who share our priorities.

For Details of the Full Research Report please contact Ruth.Deakin-Crick@bristol.ac.uk